What A Beautiful Day
by Kakashis-Rabid-Fangirl
Summary: Spoilers for book 5. Based off of the song 'What A Beautiful Day' by Chris Cagle. Remus stumbles upon a gorgeous young woman with a little girl. On their first date, he finds something out about the girl that might cause him to push himself away from her.
1. Day One: 5th Avenue

What A Beautiful Day  
  
**************** Ok, Disclaimers and such. Ria= Owned by me, Melanie= Owned by me, Remus= Not, Song (What a Beautiful Day, Chris Caigle, basis for this fic)= Not.  
  
Day One: 5th Avenue  
  
Quite simply, he was strolling casually across the intersection of a gorgeous muggle street. He stood out amongst the small crowd crossing with him, as his clothes were quite shabby compared to those around him, and many of those wearing 500 dollar suits gazed down their noses at him. He didn't mind.  
  
His light brown locks dangled down to his jawline, little ringlets ending each strand. His eyes were shut, as he was basking in the warm sunlight. Of course, the sun did little to change his forever-pale skin, but it did tend to take away from the blotchy, sick look during a specific time of the month...  
  
The heat continued to soak into his skin, the light paling his clothes even further than they already were, but it still meant nothing.  
  
"What a beautiful day.." He murmured to himself, hardly hearing his own voice over the busy streets and the crowd chattering around him. His eyes still quite closed, he attempted to block out the honking of a horn somewhere nearby, too bad if he was walking too slowly, he was enjoying himself. For once.  
  
"Oof... Oh, my apologies miss... I'm so sorry... Oh..." He stopped, gazing down at a smaller figure right next to the one he had knocked over, "And little miss..." his eyes falling on a small ebon-haired girl with the brightest blue eyes he ahd ever seen before. He outstretched a hand to the woman he had knocked over, looking quite sorry for what he had done.  
  
The woman, dark bornw hair having fallen in places they wouldn't normally sit, took the offered hand and stood up.  
  
"It's all my fault, sir... I'm sorry, I was just kind of... Basking in the sun I suppose, Melanie was rather, heh, guiding me along..." The woman stuttered out, blushing terribly, her tan cheeks burning red.  
  
"It really is me to blame, madam, I was doing the exact same, I should have been paying attention as well...." His eyes flew everywhere but to the woman, he was trying hard not to blush. He was being stupid, strolling along with hsi eyes closed in a busy intersection! He glanced at a streetsign, it appeared they were on 5th Avenue... Hm.  
  
'Should I? I mean... I just ran into her, it would be polite, right?' He questioned himself in his thoughts, his decision was finally made after an awkward minute of silence.  
  
"My name's Remus, Remus Lupin..." He said finally, unable to keep his cheeks from burning red now.  
  
"I'm Rianna Leigh... And this is my daughter Melanie..." The woman replied, her cheeks flushed as well. Rianna extended her hand for the man to shake.  
  
"Hi!" Came the little girl's adorably loud, enthusiastic greeting.  
  
"I.. Suppose we should get off of the street." Remus said after a moment, now noticing that about a dozen cars were honking at them to move, taking her hand and leading her from the street. He made a mental note of how she didn't wear an engagement ring or wedding band.  
  
"Oh! Yes!" The woman said with a laugh, her daughter and her leading the way to the safer sidewalk.  
  
'Oh, go on, Remus... Just ask, she's a Muggle, not like you're ever going to see her again... Just a cup of coffee or something...'  
  
"Would you like to have a cup of coffee, by any chance?" Remus asked quietly, apparently avoiding her eyes as though they were the sun.  
  
"Well, I was brining Melanie to daycare, you see..--"  
  
"Oh, well, that's ok, maybe we'll meet some other time then..."  
  
"-- But If you're free tomorrow, I'd love to..."  
  
Remus blushed even brighter red, finally meeting Rianna's gaze, she had amber eyes, just like him....  
  
"Fabulous... So, where is this daycare?"  
  
"Oh... It's a little ways away, how about you meet me here, tomorrow, say... Noon?" She pointed to a nice-looking tea-shop, and Remus grinned.  
  
"Alright... See you tomorrow then!"  
  
Rianna turned and started walking off in the direction Remus was originally headed. Not wanting her to think he was following her, he headed off in a round-a-bout route towards Diagon Alley. 


	2. Day 2: A Bite To Eat

Day Two: A Bite To Eat  
  
"Professor Lupin!" Came a joyful cry from a little ways down the street. Remus grinned, spotting the bespectacled boy he had grown quite fond of.  
  
"Harry!" He said merrily, Harry Potter stopping abruptly in front of him.  
  
The boy flattened a fringe ofhair that came down to cover an odd-shaped scar, the one that distinguished him as the boy who lived, the only one ever to survive the Killing Curse.  
  
"Hermione, Ron, nice to see you both as well." Remus said, watching as a tall, skinny red-haired boy ran up with a shprte,r bushy-haired girl at his side.  
  
"Professor Lupin! Just at Fred and George's shop, business is booming as usual. Now they have glasses with charms on them so you can sleep during class, but you look awake... Bought a pair myself, for History of Magic you know."  
  
Remus chuckled, shaking his head, "I take it your summer hasn't been too rough, Harry, I don't believe any Order members had to come pay the Dursley's a visit."  
  
"No, they ignored me as usual, but they found it in their hearts to let me watch the news in peace..." Harry's green eyes were twinkling slightly, it seemed he was happy for the first time since June...  
  
"Well, I know I should be telling you it's not good to do that, but I believe I did something much like that when I was in school..." A wide grin was across his pale face, turning to Ron.  
  
"That's at least better than last summer, eh Harry?"  
  
Ron smiled broadly as he went about explaining how the glasses worked, though Remus was only 1/2 listening, as he spotted a familiar person scurrying towards Gringotts.  
  
"Rianna?!" He called, jogging off, Leaving Ron standing there feeling foolish, Harry watching Remus as he ran off, and Hermione smiling brightly.  
  
"Oh, what are you so happy about Hermione?" Ron asked finally.  
  
"In case you haven't noticed, Rianna is a GIRL'S name... Professor Lupin has a girlfriend!"  
  
"Oh... Well... I wonder why he didn't tell us." Harry said thoughtfully, watching after him as he caught up to the dark-haired woman.  
  
**************  
  
"Remus?!" Rianna bawked, Stopping to stare at the young man, even if he did have a few premature grey hairs..  
  
"Rianna... You're a witch?" Remsu asked, just as dumbstruck, blinkign rapidly.  
  
"Well, if I wasn't then I suppose I'm pretty lost!" She said with a bright smile, "I should have known, you were a wizard... It just seems so, right, I suppose."  
  
"I agree." Remus said with a growing smile, his amber eyes twinkling just as magically as 1/2 of the enchanted objects staring at them through shop windows. "But, how come I've never seen you before?"  
  
"I don't really know, I've lived in England for a year now..." Rianna said, "I would have thought I would have seen you before..."  
  
"Ah, well, that might be it then. I've been rather busy over the past year, with Voldemort rising again and all..." Remus sighed exasperatedly, any social life he had previously had was now quite gone, as The Order took up most of his time...  
  
"Yes, I suppose it is. Well, still up for that cup of coffee?" Rianna asked, still smiling brightly, seeming to not notice the fact Remus had spoken the Dark Lord's name directly.  
  
"Of course.. But since we're both here, I suppose we needn't go searching for that tea shop on 5th avenue, hm?" Remus said, scanning the street for a tea shop that wasn't too busy. His hands were stuffed in his pockets and he found himself rocking back on forth on his feet, ball to heel, ball to heel, ball ot heel.  
  
Rianna giggled, and he blushed once more, looking down at his feet now as he continued to rock back and forth.  
  
"Sure.. I know a nice little place, it's out past Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.. Melanie loves that store, Fred and George know us by name." Rianna said, laughingly as she took Remus by the hand and strode off down the alley.  
  
"Me too, then again, I taught them for a year, and am clsoe friends with their parents, brothers, sister, and their brother's friends..." Remus said, smiling and chuckling as Fred waved through the large front window of his store at him.  
  
Remus casually waved back as Rianna laughed, "Well, that could be it, oh, here's our place!" She stopped in front of a building that looked old with a homely air about it. Over the door hung a sign saying, "Aunt Lynn's Tea and Coffe Shop" with a smiling old woman's face beneath the writing, winking and waving at passers-by.  
  
As they pushed through the door, the faint scent of flowers tickled their noses, and it was pleasantly warm. Remus gazed around adn wooden tables were set in booths and out in the open, each adorned with a soft pink or baby blue tablecloth, atop it a single red or white rose sat within a crystal vase. A large chandelier dangled overhead as little fairies danced about in a show atop it.  
  
"Another couple! Tha's the 5th today! You look so adorable together!" Said the plump old witch behind the counter, her face resembling the one on the sign above her door, "You know what? Because you two look so adorable together, you're tea's on the house, hm?" Aunt Lynn said with a wlecoming smile.  
  
"I really couldn't." Remus began, but was cut off quite quickly by aunt Lynn.  
  
"Oh, don't worry about it, I can tell when romance is in the air, and I think you two deserve to worry about a few other things than the bill.. Come now, take a seat, I'll be back in a moment."  
  
Rianna guided Remus over towards a booth in the corner, sitting down on the opposite side of the table as him. At that moment Aunt Lynn came puffing over, holding a tray with two large, steaming cups of hot tea.  
  
"Thank you very much." Remus said quietly, running a hand through his prematurely greying hair.  
  
"Yes, thank you..." Rianna echoed, smiling as she took her hot cup and sat it gently on the table before her.  
  
"Oh, no problem sweethearts... Take care." The woman winked and walked off, leaving Rianna and Remus quite alone in their little corner.  
  
Remus held his cup out before his face, the steam pouring off of it obscuring his vision as he sued it as cover to stare at Rianna, to study her.  
  
"So, tell me a little about yourself... I'm veyr interested..." Remus said quietly, taking a sip of tea to hide his pink cheeks.  
  
"Oh, well, I've travelled a lot. I was born hare in England, but moved to France at a young age. I went to Beauxbatons, as my mother had. When I graduated I decided I wanted to get back to my roots, though, so I moved back here for a few years. Evantually I decided I wanted to see some more of the world and visited America, then Japan, and came back here to stay." Rianna said thoughtfully.  
  
"Ah... Interesting. I don't want to be nosey or anything, but what about Melanie?"  
  
"Oh..." rianna paused, staring down at her tea as she felt its heat on her face, "Well Melanie... I got pregnant with Melanie during a very short-term relationship with someone I really don't feel comfortable talking about... He's dead now, and I miss him.."  
  
"I'm so sorry. I know how it feels to lose a loved one. My two best friends are both dead, as of now... They were like my brothers..."  
  
"Oh... Who were they?"  
  
"Well, James Potter..."  
  
"James Potter? His son is Harry..."  
  
"Yes, I was with Harry and his friends when I spotted you, I can introduce you all later..." Remus said, taking the chance to change the subject, he wasn't sure if Rianna believed Sirius was innocent, and he really didn't want her to hate him because of what people had believed Sirius was....  
  
"I would like that... But who was the other?"  
  
"Well, that one's a bit more touchy, you see."  
  
"I wont mind.. It can't be as bad as mine..."  
  
"Well... It was Sirius Black."  
  
Rianna's hands began to shake, and she felt hot tea spill over her milky skin, it hurt. Her eyes clsoed and she took in deep breaths, pulling her hands to her chest in pain.  
  
Remus reached out to her, wanting to help as he always had.  
  
"Let me... You must think I'm a crazy man, but let me help you..."  
  
Rianna whimpered and held out her hands to Remus, who immediately began to mend them with a spell.  
  
"I don't think you're mental, but..." She took in another deep breath, not from pain, but from debating if she could trust him or not.  
  
"Sirius Black is Melanie's father."  
  
The words hit Remsu like a ton of bricks in the chest. He slumped back and couldn't breath, he wanted to reach out and grab something for support. His best friend had had a daughter, and had never known about it... 


	3. Day 2: Talk

Day 2: Talk  
  
He fell forwards, burying his face in his hands as he took a few deep breaths. He found he had knocked his cup of tea to the floor, but hadn't heard the crash. Aunt Lynn was staring worriedly over at them, and Rianna was looking quite embarrassed, but didn't seem to be standing up to run away anytime soon...  
  
"I'm sorry, that was... A bit of a shock, shall we say?" Remus said, sitting up straight again and coughing into his hands. He wiped at his eyes for a moment, as though they might tear up, and Rianna could guess why.  
  
"It's like having him die all over again, isn't it? You've just managed to push him to the back of your head, where you put.. James, was it? Yes, and then you find out that he had a daughter..." Rianna said slowly, speaking to him as a mother might tell her child that their pet dog had been hit by a car.  
  
Leaning down over the table, blinking the tears from his eyes now, he coughed once more and looked up. His amber eyes were swollen slightly already, and his face suddenly looked more pale and sullen than before, "On the button."  
  
Rianna's eyes went slightly misty as she gazed at Remus, as though she wasn't seeing him anymore. Reaching out, she touched his cheek gently and smiled softly, the corners to her mouth turning upwards ever-so-slightly.  
  
"It hurts.." She said, blinking slowly and removing her hand from his face, "Not just you... I loved him, even if it was a short relationship. I hadn't known who he was, I should have, but I didn't. He was the handsome stranger with mystical blue eyes. His hair, of course, was quite a mess when we met, and I've learned now that it was during his journey to find Harry Potter that we met. It was a week-long relationship, him and I, short and sweet...." She now, looked like she was going to cry.  
  
Remus moved to reach out to her, but stopped when she looked into his eyes.  
  
"I gave birth to Melanie exactly 9 months after the last night we spent together. It had only been a week, and I saw him in her every time I touched her, held her... Can you imagine it? 4 years of your life hating someone for leaving you? Wondering why they left, thinking they hated you and you were just some fling? Can you imagine kissing your daughter goodnight and feeling hatred and love all at once?"  
  
Remus was silent, quite still for several moments, digesting her words, then slowly shook his head. He now did reach over and touch Rianna, wiping the tears from her cheeks. She seemed surprised by the action, as though she could never have guessed that the tears were there.  
  
The comforting silence seemed to make them both feel better, when Rianna finally whispered quietly, "Can we talk about something else now?"  
  
A Remus nodded his reply, Rianna smiled once more, sitting up, her eyes slightly puffy and swollen, but the look across her face made her seem just as beautiful as before.  
  
"What do you do, Remus?"  
  
"Well, I'm a teacher, actually, though lately I've had quite a bit else on my mind..." he stopped, "I taught at Hogwarts for a year, in fact."  
  
"Really, what subject?" Rianna seemed quite interested now.  
  
"Defence Against the Dark Arts..." He said, thinking back to the good times he had had that year...  
  
Rianna seemed to stare blankly at him for a moment, then smiled, "You taught during Harry Potter's 3rd year, didn't you? You were the werewolf teacher?"  
  
Remus gulped slightly, looking nervously away, but he nodded his answer. He knew he shouldn't be afraid of the world knowing, but the hatred shot at him for being what he was, it was unbearable...  
  
"Interesting." Rianna said with a smile, "My brother's a werewolf, actually, bitten last year, you know... When he came back from the hospital he said that some red-haired balding man kept trying to speak to him about a friend of his that was a werewolf..."  
  
Remus chuckled, "A Mr. Weasley, by any chance?"  
  
"That would be it."  
  
"Then I suppose he was speaking about me..."  
  
"Well, give him my apologies, as my brother has always been too stubborn to do so..." She laughed slightly as she reached across the table and took Remus's hand, blushing a soft pink.  
  
"I don't think I've ever been able to actually talk to someone, tell someone, about Melanie... Thank you."  
  
Remus had nothing to say to that, he simply smiled comfortingly and squeezed her hand a little, leaning a little further over the table.  
  
"What's it like? Being a werewolf, I mean... My brother's afraid of telling people, and has already told me 'If you tell a soul I'll make sure that the first person i bite is you!' though I doubt he'd ever do that..."  
  
Remus went a little rigid, staring at Rianna, "He wouldn't have a choice. The Wolfsbane potion is the only way for him to keep his thoughts clear during that single, horrible night... If he doesn't take it, and you're near, you may very well be the first person he bites, whether he meant to or not..."  
  
Rianna's face fell slightly as she stared back at him, a look of worry and anxiousness crossing her face, all she could say was a very quiet and meek "Oh."  
  
The werewolf looked away, then back again, noticing that Aunt Lynn was trying to catch their attention. He waved her over and the woman scurried her fastest.  
  
"A snack, perhaps?" The woman asked, a smile crossing her cherubic features.  
  
Remus shook his head slowly, but Rianna looked up and smiled, "A cauldron cake, please?" She asked, and the woman nodded, scurrying off again.  
  
"What is the... Transformation, like?"  
  
"Painful." Remus said quietly, not even realizing that his hands had clenched themselves into such tight fists that his knuckles had turned white, "Very painful. Every bone in your body shifts and changes, feeling your face elongate, watching your fingers turn into claws... It hurts.."  
  
Rianna nodded slowly, "So it's nothing like transfomring into an Animagus... I'm sorry I asked and made you have to relive it again, it sounds as though you do it enough... I was just curious... You see, I'm animagus for a wolf..."  
  
Remus nodded slowly, "He... He was an Animagus." He said softly, feeling that pain resurface. Everything reminded him of Sirius Black, and it was amazing how much it hurt. Sirius had been like a brother to him in school, and of course Remus thought Sirius had murdered James and Peter like the rest of the Wizarding world, but he was the first to figure out that the man had not. After that, they had been like brothers once more, which made it hurt even more to have watched him die...  
  
He didn't realize he was crying, he just looked down and saw a few darker spots on the tablecloth, and knew. He immediately went about wiping them away. He shouldn't be doing this, not in front of a woman that was pretty much a complete stranger...  
  
When he looked over at Rianna, though, he saw her tears as well. Her cheeks were damp once more, and Remus felt as bad for her as he did for himself. She felt his pain, even if it was in a different way...  
  
Rianna coughed, then smiled slightly, "I see you have the same feelings as myself. Everything reminds you of him.. I can't go into the muggle world anymore, thanks to motorcycles." she laughed a little, then took in a deep breath, "I'm happy I've found someone I can talk to Remus..."  
  
He felt a tingle run up his spine as he stared at her, golden eyes meeting each other.  
  
"I'm happy I can help." He finally said after what seemed to be hours...  
  
After an awkward moment of silence in which both had begun to blush a pale pink hue, Remus finally spoke up once more..  
  
"If... If you'd like, because I know I would, we could... Go out again?" He stuttered out, realizing he hadn't asked a girl out on a date often, and that he must sound stupid.  
  
"I would love to, Remus Lupin... Here..." She reached down and scribbled down on a napkin by her plate, only now noticing her cauldron cake had arrived, "My address, muggle telephone number and I'm connected to the floo network."  
  
Remus nodded, taking the napkin and stuffing it into his pocket, "I'll get a hold of you on my next night off..." he said, smiling.  
  
"Anyway... What do you say we speak about something a little more cheerful? Last week Melanie..."  
  
****  
  
3 hours later  
  
****  
  
"I have to pick melanie up from Daycare, now don't lose that napkin Remus!" Rianna said with a smile, giggling slightly as she stood up, dropping a few pound son the table. Remus shook his head at that and pushed her money back towards her.  
  
"You're so very sweet Remus, it's a shame we've only met now..."  
  
He watched as she left, feeling light-hearted and cheerful, but that sunken feeling came tumbling back as he only now remembered that he was supposed to meet Harry at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes 30 minutes ago...  
  
******************  
  
That's the end of chapter 3, and I thank you all for the reviews I've gotten! I'm willing to add a few requests to the story if you people are willing to send them. I've got several more chapters to do, as the song I'm basing this all off of is fairly long *L* 


End file.
